Committee sends back Lilongwe City CEO

The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament on Wednesday sent back Lilongwe City Council chief executive officer for failing to explain expenditures in excess of a billion kwacha.

CEO Kelvin M’mangisa, who was not at the city council during the period under review, failed to address questions raised in the audit report of 2006, 2007 and 2008 by the National Audit Office.

According to the committee’s statement, M’mangisa was expected to explain unaccounted for revenues the city council collected from 2006 to 2008.

Said the statement: “Could the controlling officer explain to the committee whether revenue amounting to about K30.8 million and whether revenue in respect of occupational licences totalling K10.8 million have since been accounted for and if so, produce documentary evidence.”

The statement also queries whether payment vouchers totalling K813 million were submitted for audit and whether K133 885 not signed for by four officers were accounted for.

The committee also queried the council’s excess budget expenditure, outstanding accounts receivables and unbanked revenues collected.

Demanded the committee: “Could the controlling officer explain why sums of around  K77 million, K171 million and 180.5 million during 2005, 2006 and 2007 fiscal years were overspent against budget allocations?

“Could he also inform the committee the composition of account receivables amounting to K25 million and also inform us whether debtors have paid and produce evidence. Let him also explain how revenue collected between 2005 to 2008 amounting to K5.3 million not banked was accounted for.”

Chairperson of the parliamentary committee Beatrice Mwangonde said M’mangisa’s responses were not addressing issues raised by the team and asked him to go back and re-draft the answers to convince the committee.

Said the chair: “The committee has noted with big concerns that the responses provided by the controlling officer are not addressing the issues raised by the committee. Among the short falls, there is no documented evidence which the committee wanted in the responses.”

M’mangisa said he was given short notice to appear before the committee and that it would be difficult for him to find some documents because most of the issues raised happened before he joined the city council.

Said the CEO: “It is sad that the committee is not convinced by our responses. The problem is that I was not given enough time to prepare and the questions that are here are different from the questions that I received.

“It should also be considered that most of the issues queried happened before I came. When I became the chief executive officer, I demanded an audit which unveiled huge losses of money in millions of kwacha and a lot of people were interdicted, so it is difficult to find some required documents.”

National Audit Office public relations officer Thomas Chafunya said most of the queries by the committee required the city council to provide documented evidence which M’mangisa did not bring and the committee can only accept his responses if he brings the required paperwork.